i surrender
by gleefulgirl
Summary: set after "special education"...puck confronts rachel after "dog days are over"..puckleberry goodness..i do not own glee..
1. Chapter 1

Set after "special education"...puckleberry friendship..

He watched her from the corner of his eyes as they danced and jumped all around the stage to the beats of "Dog days are over". She skipped and frolicked like nothing was wrong with the world, like her heart hadn't just be shattered to a million pieces by the tall boy a few steps away from her. If Puck had ever doubted that Rachel wasn't a good actress (not that he ever had), he would have been mocked by the smile that played across her face right now. So much for Mr. Schue's accusation of Rachel not being a good sport or being selfish.

When the performance ended and he watched most of the glee members drive or being driven out of the school gate, he made his way back to the auditorium. He knew she would be still there, since he hadn't seen her since their dance number.

As he opened the door, he saw the petite frame of the brunette sitting on the stage with her feet dangling off the edges. Thankfully, God was being kinder to him since she wasn't crying. He wondered how long she had, before her tear glands had run dry. But still the sight of her all defeated and mourning hit a strange, uncomfortable bundle of nerves in the pit of his stomach and for a moment or two he contemplated whether he should just turn on his heels and flee to the warmth and comfort of his truck. But hell...fleeing was for pussies and he certainly wasn't one. And those 24 hours in the port-a-potty had definitely in no way been a stain on his perfect manliness methods. If anything, they had actually spurred the indestructible Puckerman charm…and not to mention the renewed alliance with God himself.

So taking a deep breath, he started his way towards the stage. The sound of his feet walking towards her broke her from whatever reverie she was lost in. She lifted her head and let out a sigh when she saw who it was.

"Hey, what are you still doing here?" Puck asked, taking a seat next to her.

"I could ask you the same question", Rachel replied without looking at him.

"Yeah, sure you could. But I asked you first. Besides, shouldn't you be home so that you can go all crazy and work on your plans to beat Tommy Tune at the Tony's or something?"

Rachel looked up at that. And instead of the trademark Rachel Berry scowl followed by the influx of a thousand-word marathon, he was greeted by a ghost of a smile playing at her pink, soft lips.

"You remember that?" she asked, her eyes glinting with surprise.

"Pretty much", Puck replied, looking down. For some reason, he couldn't meet her eyes then. And he wasn't sure if it was because he was afraid of what she might see in his, or if he feared what he wouldn't see in hers.

The thing about Rachel...she made him feel strange things. And these feelings weren't just restricted to the lower half of his body (though more than often they tend to dominate there), but also some weird churnings in the pit of his stomach when he saw her sometimes (read : all the time), or that unexpected thudding of the drum somewhere in his chest (he refused to refer to it as the beating of his heart) that had escalated when she had tangled her arms in his last week, or right now when the sound was making it impossible to stop staring at her plump, dry lips and think of a sensible, bad-ass thing to say to her to break off the awkward silence that had fallen between them.

With all of the self-control that he could muster, Puck shut his eyes to try and focus on the right thing to do. Bending over and kissing her didn't seem the most feasible option, considering that she was in the condition that she was in right now, because of their last (totally hot like hell) liplock session. Which apparently reminded him of why he was sitting here with her in the first place.

"Listen, Rachel. I'm really sorry about Finn and you."

Okay. So that was a lie. He wasn't the littlest bit sorry about the break-up. In fact he was the opposite of it. Maybe a bit sorry about his part in it, or because he would never want to see her hurt and broken like that. His undeniable urge to protect her seem to be expanding by bounds these days. But she didn't need to know that.

"It's okay. It's not your fault; you know…at least not entirely." She lightly touched his hand with hers.

_Its okay..._he remembered those soft words leaving her lips as she had sat on his laps last year in the boys bathroom.

_Its okay_…somehow he couldn't help but wonder if that's when _this_, whatever this is, had all begun. The moment her chocolate brown eyes had forgiven him after all he had put her through, when he had looked into them to see a better version of him that he secretly hoped to be… for her…

Or maybe it had begun when they'd locked their eyes into each others, with matching smiles, as he had called her his "sweet caroline"…

Or maybe the first time she had called him Noah and he had let her, not only because he didn't want an hour-long lecture about his "unacceptable demeanor" to use his real name, but also because he had liked the sound of it coming from her lips in her sweet, gentle voice…

Shit. Scratch that. He can't be thinking of all such things. There's no way in hell the Puckster's gonna be feeling all these crappy feelings. Damn Rachel and double damn his weakness for all things Rachel Berry. He felt the urgent need to steer clear of all these thoughts.

As he shot back to the present, he realized her hand was still rested on his, which didn't particularly help with the clearing process. So he decided a change of topic might.

"So do you want a ride home?"

"That would be really nice of you, Noah." She replied with a smile, although it didn't quite reach her eyes.

So Puck took her hand in his and jumped off the stage and made his way towards the exit and into the hallway. While they walked through, he realized her hands were wound around his guns. He couldn't help but smirk.

"This is kinda becoming our trademark Puckleberry walk, eh?"

"Puckleberry? I was of the notion that you found it _humiliating_. In fact I'm positive you were the one to not-so-kindly point that out when I last mentioned it", Rachel said, an eyebrow raised at him.

"I didn't say it was any less now, but considering the fact that you absolutely love it, I will take it", he said with a wink. He was glad that Rachel was returning to her loud, annoying (read: cute, endearing) self.

"I do _not_ absolutely love it, Noah." Rachel pouted at him.

And then added, quite matter-of-factly, "Okay. Maybe a little." She laughed a little laugh, subconsciously placing a strand of her hair behind her ear. And Puck couldn't help but wonder for the umpteenth time if she knew how hot (read: beautiful) she looked when she did that.

"I knew it, babes", Puck said with a smug smile on his face.

Rachel's laughter died down and she let out a sigh.

"Does this make me a bad person, Noah? To walk with a boy I cheated with on my boyfriend after we just broke up? I mean, the whole school seems to be hiding behind the bushes ready to attack me for the slightest mistake they seem to assume I made. Why am I the only one who gets yelled at and ridiculed when the rest of the glee club isn't exactly winning a Nobel for an act of selflessness either? Why does Finn call me mean and unfeeling when he did the same things to Quinn while they were dating? Why do I have to struggle more than everyone else to just make it through this school? Is it so unreal to dream of a future that I am sure awaits me? Is it a crime to want to be different? To want to be respected and appreciated for the reservoir of talent that I am? Or am I really such a terrible person? Tell me, Noah." Rachel's voice that had begun as a whisper had now reached a decibel that Puck was quite sure only dogs could hear.

As she finished her speech, Puck held a panting Rachel by her shoulders.

"Rachel, first of all, CALM DOWN! God…just breathe already ok?... I thought I might have to take you to emergency. And second of all, you aren't a terrible person. You are insane and crazy and focused and stubbornly talented and driven and different. But definitely not terrible. See, when I said I kinda like you, I meant it alright?"

"Really?"

"Yeah." And then she hugged him. The warmth of her body pressed against his did wondrous things to him. He stroked her hair as she stood there, leaning into him and he knew he was not the only one who liked it.

When they finally broke apart and continued their Puckleberry walk, he turned to her.

"And walking with me doesn't make you a bad person, Rachel. It just makes you incredibly attracted to me." He said with a smug.

"Noah!...", she gasped, before catching on his playful mood and punching him lightly on his arms."You know I must add that you are surprisingly good at this."

"I know. I'm absolutely amazing at pretty much everything. But what exactly are you referring to?"

"Being a friend."

As he watched a genuine smile spread across her face, the one that made her eyes sparkle like the star that she was, he knew there was no turning back now. And although he dreaded the idea of where this might lead, he put up his hands and surrendered.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

_this is my first write-up ever. so pls review...thanx..._


	2. Chapter 2

_**Hey thanx a lot for all your reviews. here's my 2nd chapter. Hope you like it!**_

**Chapter 2**

"Noah, do you wanna come home later tonight? My dads and I are having a Chinese night, and since I don't think you're having Christmas dinner at your place, you might as well join us."

Puck turned around, lifting his guitar case to his back.

"So you've decided to talk to me again, Berry, have you?" he replied, a little too harshly.

See, he didn't mean to sound like some crazy-whiny-girlfriend, but their current situation and his piled-up frustration weren't exactly co-operating with his bad-ass mind right now.

It had all started a few days ago. The day after he had walked Rachel out of the auditorium. Puck had walked to glee practice hoping to talk to Rachel about helping him with his homework. Since he had already accepted that he liked this girl way more than he should, he'd thought that a friendship would definitely be a better option than spending time pining for her like some weird gay cliché sitcom hero. And what better way to do that than to make her do his homework. Actually he could think of hundred other ways that were absolutely awesome and way better but he wasn't exactly sure if she'd agree with his ideas of how they could be spending time "together". Not atleast now, when she had just broken up with St. Finn.

Seeing her standing near the piano with notes in her hands, he had walked towards her.

"Hey, wassup?"

She had looked up at him with a smile, then glanced behind him, her smile suddenly faltering, and her face going visibly pale before she'd said a mumbled "hi" and walked away to sit with the rest.

Now Puck might have this whole be-nice-to-fellow-jew thing going on (not to mention his newly found affinity towards Rachel), but he definitely wasn't going to take that blow to his ego well. Who the hell did she think she was? If she didn't want him around, he was definitely not gonna go and invade her arrogant little space. The Puckster's not some lame ass excuse for a friend. Screw her.

Somewhere between his thoughts, he'd realised he might be over-reacting, and that he was being nothing less of a drama-freaking-queen (God, what the hell was this Rachel chick doing to him?), so he'd shut his thoughts and tried concentrating on Finn's idea of how Christmas was fast-approaching and how they should all get into the "spirit" and how it was his favorite holiday. Seriously though, why the hell would anyone be this excited about the birth of someone they didn't believe in to start with was beyond Puck's understanding. Whatever. Puck was only glad (and a little relieved) that Finn wasn't mad at him about the whole break-up thing. How in his twisted mind did Finn not think it was Puck's fault too, was a mystery to Puck, but he figured it was better like this than volunteering to be Finn's punching bag. It was good to not lose his best friend (even though it was limited to their XboX expedition for now) to the same old mistake after they had just started being civil around each other.

And so the week had gone by with carols, and the Christmas trees and the grinch-drama. And though at one point, Puck had had the serious urge to remind Mr. Shcue that he was Jewish and would like some Hanukkah celebrations too, or that time when he had had to actually restrain his fists from landing into Finn's face for his empty words about Christmas spirit and then doing nothing to fix a thing (seriously, if Finn had mentioned it one more time, he would have let his fists do their dirty job), he thought this Christmas was not so bad.

_Not so bad_. But it was bad, nevertheless. Bad because, a) Rachel was pretending he did not exist, and b) as much as he told himself that he didn't give shit about it, he did.

It was driving him nuts, to be honest. And he despised the way any one girl could have so much influence on him. And though he was sure he was doing a good job of letting her know that he did not care, all he wanted to do was to go up to her and shake her until she gave him some answers. I mean who goes from calling you their friend, then hugging you, and thanking you for caring one day to just point blank ignoring you the next. Even he, _the_ _Puckasaurus_ doesn't do stuff like that. Atleast _he_ doesn't remember doing stuff like that.

So when she is standing behind him and inviting him for dinner at her place, after they have just witnessed Artie's "christmas miracle" and it's just her and him in the room, all he can do is be as mean to her as he possibly can. That is before he looks into those deep, brown eyes and has to remind himself why exactly he is being rude to her. He does that with some effort.

And no. He is most definitely _not_ relieved, let alone happy, that this girl is finally talking to him. And that is _so not_ his heart fluttering like crazy just because she called him Noah.

Rachel lets out a little gasp before she opens her mouth, then shuts it, and opens it again. She is never short of some drama, is she?

"I … I never stopped talking to you." She said defensively. Puck scoffed. So she continued. "At least I didn't intend to. I'm sorry if I made you feel like you were being ignored. That was not how I presumed you would feel about the situation. And I take full responsibility….."

"Woah, woah. Rachel. Slow down. Who said anything about being ignored?"

She smiled at him, and he knew well that playing the I-don't-care card with Rachel? Never freaking works.

"I get it. You were too busy trying to throw your little ass into Finnessa's pretty face."

"Noah!" she chided. "That is a disgusting display of your terrible vocabulary." Then she looked down, fidgeting with the helms of her sweater. "And I guess Finn told you about my futile efforts to win him back. He said he could never forgive me. And he broke up with me again."

"Finn didn't tell me a thing. It's not really hard to miss a creepy Berry, minus the jumping and the 1000-watt smile, ya' know."

"Guess I was being pathetic."

She looked up at him through her eyelashes, and he was pretty sure those were big, fat tears threatening to roll down her cheek. He could handle the I-am-better-than-you Rachel and even the terrifyingly driven I'll-make-it-to-the-top Rachel. Even this version of the puppy-eyed, be-my-friend Rachel. But a crying Rachel? No freaking way was he gonna be able to deal with that.

So he decided to lighten the mood.

"Yes, you were."

Ok. Not exactly the kind of words that would make her feel better. Rachel pouted at that.

"Whatever, Berry. You should know better than to go all desperate over someone who breaks up with you after he has already done that. No offence, but I'm starting to think you might not be the sharpest tool in the shed after all."

"Okay. Okay. First of all, I am NOT desperate. And second of all, I completely understand your lack of insight about how a mature, romantic relationship should really work, considering your _wonderful_ history with women. And third of all, I may be going through some vital phase in my life, but that definitely does not make me any less smarter than I was before. And I should let you know…what? Why are you laughing?"

So he didn't actually lighten up the mood, but ranting was better than the sobbing any day. And he's trying really hard to not make Rachel feel worse, but worked up Rachel is hilarious (and cute… shut up!).

"I must mention here that I'm really glad that I've got a friend to remind me just how awful and annoying I am, and he's got a great timing too. So thank you, Noah." She said sarcastically, and tried to walk away.

Puck held her by her wrists and turned her around, not loosening his grasp until she looked him in the eyes. Okay. So how did it exactly turned into her being the hurt one and him being the comforter?

"See, I'm not gonna be apologizing for what I just said and I'm not taking any of that back. But I'm gonna give you the Puckerman ride home. So come on."

The smile playing at her lips let him know that he had been forgiven without even apologizing. That didn't even make sense. But he dug this crazy connection they had.

So he took her hand and led her out of the choir room.

While walking towards their parking lot, he realized this was not how he had intended for their conversation to go. Hell. He hadn't even thought they would have a dialogue. And what had happened to all his smug ego? Well, she had begun the convo, so that was cool. And what about his stubborn badassness? Oh yeah. He'd permanently lost the ability to say no to Rachel somewhere during their week-long fling. Could his life be any more pathetic? He doubted it. But her voice drawing him back to the present let him know that maybe this wasn't such a bad idea.

"Does this mean you'll be staying for dinner?" she asked brightly.

"Maybe. But on one condition. You don't torture me with your idea of a movie time that includes Grease or Westside Story or whatever other shitty musical you have stacked in your closet."

"Okay. I promise that I will put you through none of that. God forbid someone finds out that Puck knows the tunes to Tonight." She laughed.

Puck realized her hand had slipped around his arms while she blabbered on. Guess Rachel couldn't resist the Puckerones after all. He tried not to think of the way her fingers felt around his arms, even through his sweater.

As they got into his truck and he turned on the heat and hit the gas, Rachel spoke softly.

"Noah, I'm sorry I didn't initiate a conversation with you earlier than today. I know I wasn't really being a good friend." Puck couldn't help but notice how many times she was using the word "friend". It made him wonder if she was doing it to remind him or herself that they were friends. _Just friends_.

He shrugged it off. But she seemed determined to explain her side of the story.

"I just thought it would be best for us to keep our distance, considering the flow of events that followed last time we got together. And I'm in no way hinting that I don't trust you. I just didn't want to make it more complicated than it already was."

"So what made you change your mind? Apart from my irresistible charms."

She giggled at that. And then got all serious. "I don't think I want to give this up, considering you are the only one to like me in the entire glee club."

Puck looked at her. This girl was really shattered from the inside. How could anyone see it and not want to help her? How could Finn _not_ see it? All he wanted to do right then was to pull her close and hold her tight till she found the strength to hold herself again. Maybe even after that.

"I would really appreciate it if you kept your eyes on the road, Noah. Please." Rachel said pleadingly.

Well, maybe she was already healing. He couldn't help but feel smug that he played a role in it.

Just as they were about to take the turn that led to her driveway, Rachel got a text. Which to his surprise, she read out loud.

" 'All glee losers, get your pathetic loser selves to Will Schuester's tiny rathole excuse of a house. Now. Coach Sylvester.' This is strange. What do you propose we do?"

"I say let's go find out what Sue's up to?"

So they finally got to Mr. Schue's house 45 minutes later, because Rachel insisted that they both get an outfit change, to which Puck replied that they help each other with it since it was Christmas and helping was good way to keep up the "spirit", to which Rachel settled on a 10-minute lecture about his crassness, to which Puck just rolled his eyes off and told her to just freaking change for Heaven's sake, so that after another 10 minutes they were on the road again, before Rachel reminded him that he needed to change too, to which he asked her to go to hell not-so-politely, after which she refused to talk to him for the rest of the journey even though he was wearing a "clean, decent" outfit. But even so, after she got out of his truck, she waited for him to join her before they walked together across Mr. Schue's lawn and then started her speech about how she thought it was considerate of Coach Sylvester to not have their teacher spend Christmas alone.

After a follow-up of Sue's orders to "slave up, bake and deck" and Shcue's surprised whimper, they were all gathered around the Christmas tree to fancy it up, when he saw Rachel sneak a glance at Finn and smile. And before he could feel the familiar flux of disgust that usually accompanied their pukey display, Rachel looked up to him and flashed her 1000-watt smile at him. Oh, he could totally get used to this smile. The grin threatening at his own lips let him know that maybe he already was. A little too much.

_**Please review and let me know what you think!...**_


	3. Chapter 3

**hey sorry guys, you had to wait a long time. but i was really busy...hope you enjoy this!**

**Chapter 3**

If there's one thing Rachel Berry hates more than an inexcusable waste of an entire week, it's the preposterous lack of planning that led to it. Storming towards the other side of the room, she took off the "his-her relationship calender" rested pathetically (pathetic because she'd still let it hang there) on her bedroom wall, smugly displaying the romance-scheduled weeks she had thoroughly planned for the months to come. Just before she tossed the sheet into her waste-bin, she caught a glimpse of her handwritten notes that read today was their double-date night with Barbara Streisand and Omar Sharif in their classic rendition of Funny Girl.

She took faltering steps towards her bed and sat herself upon it, pulling up her feet to hug them. She had somehow managed to get past her lonely nights that she'd cried herself to sleep. It had taken almost a week and another but with a little help from Kurt and Mercedes she had pulled herself out of that storm. Who would've thought that the three divas would one day be snuggling up to each other for comfort? She couldn't help but smile she could call them her friends.

Mercedes had called her on New Year's to ask if she had any plans. She didn't have any apart from sulking in her bedroom while thinking about a certain boy who would probably not be thinking of her. So the two of them, along with Kurt, had hung out at her place. Rachel had been quite surprised by their kind gesture but she took it without any questions asked. She needed all the distractions she could fathom. After that, Mercedes always made sure Rachel was invited to her shopping trips, or her hair-dressing rituals. And Rachel always made sure she went along unless it clashed with her dance rehearsals or yoga time or vocal lessons or meditation hour…

The thing that bothered her the most was that she had resumed all these activities after almost a week's time. And winter break was never meant to be a break. It is the brushing up period she gets to try and take on Lima with her incredulous, refreshed talent in the New Year. She had never been so distracted from her goals before.

Not even when she was 7 years old and had fractured her leg by tripping on the sidewalk. She had adamantly refused to just lie in the hospital for two weeks. (What if the plaster had soaked up all her talent?). So her dads had arranged for her music teacher to tutor her every day for an hour.

Not even when she was 9 and had to witness the death of her best friend – her bunny named Bunny. She had channeled her pain into a performance for her dads.

Not even last year when Finn had been toying around with her. Finn. _Finn_.

"Rachel, sweetie, your friend's here to see you." Her daddy called from downstairs.

"Coming, daddy." She quickly rushed to her mirror and checked if any tears threatened their way out of her eyes. If Noah saw her like that, she was sure he would be mad at her. And she was just not in the mood to indulge in an argument with him, which she was positive would follow. While she combed her hair hurriedly, she heard a knock on her door.

"Hey, wassup?" He said, walking into the room. He sat down on the bed before she could answer, looking intently at her.

"Have you been crying again?"

"No, I haven't been crying. I don't know why you would make such an assumption." She said, a little too fast to sound convincing, even to herself.

"'Cos you look like you just lost a Grammy two years in a row to the same jackass." He said casually, smirking.

"Haha. Very funny." Rachel rolled her eyes, although a smile was already pulling at her lips. "And for your information, my years of practice and genetically superior traits of ever-flowing talent will never lead me to such a cruel fate. When I step into the real world, I'm gonna take over it. " She said, more to herself than him.

"How about you step out of your room first? Cos it stinks of 'suck' in here. And also soy milk. But mostly, suck."

Rachel frowned at that. Her room freshener was perfectly functioning. "I _have been_ stepping out, you know. I just got home from my ballet class."

Noah raised an eyebrow at that. Something she always wished she could do.

"Fine. I know I need to go out and enjoy some fresh air every once in a while." She said sitting next to him and sighing. "But I really got to make up for the entire week of break that I had to, due to unmentionable circumstances, miss out on. If I keep going at this rate, I'll never be able to reach my goal of completing the 50 mash-ups I had planned for my MySpace videos."

"Holy shit, Rachel. That's just crazy. But then it's you. So maybe not so much." He said smiling at her.

How he could just insult her like that and then smile it off, without offending her ego, she had no idea. But he'd been doing that for quite some time now and she didn't mind it so much. So she smiled back at him.

"So let's start working on this great song that I recently heard. Where's your guitar?"

"Haven't you been listening to me at all? I said I don't wanna stay in this room." He almost whined.

"Noah, it doesn't smell of soy milk. I just refilled the freshener. If you want, I will go check it again." And she started to make her way to the other side. Why he was being so infantile all of a sudden, she was not sure.

"Rachel, we are going out! Seriously, for someone with your GPA, I thought you could understand better." He said, tugging her towards the door.

"Wait. Wait. Where exactly are we going? And I need to change into an appropriate outfit." She was wearing a black skirt with matching stockings and her favorite pink cardigan over a black top.

"What's wrong with the one that you're wearing? It looks cool. You're looking good, babe." he smirked.

The right thing to do then would have been to swat away his hand and call him out on calling her a babe. Instead, she looked up into his hazel eyes that were boring into hers and stood there defenselessly as a rush of warmth that began in her stomach made its way through her chest and threatened to spill out of her cheeks. She quickly let go of his hands before she did something she would regret. And with him, she was more prone to doing it than with anyone else.

"Alright then, I won't bother changing." She said nervously.

Noah just nodded his head and led their way outside. She called over her shoulders to tell her dads she'd be out for a while and she was positive she caught dad glancing at daddy with the familiar smile that meant they were reading way too much into this than they should. She would have to clear off their irrational assumptions when she got back. Sure, Noah and she were spending a lot of time together lately, mostly practising duets (because she insisted it) or studying (because he _needed_ it), but that, in not the smallest bit, meant that they were anything more than friends. Not atleast after what had passed just before Christmas. Her dads ought to know her better than that.

She got into the truck that Noah was already seated in. (Seriously, where was he when they were taught manners?).

"Where are we going, Noah? You should know that I don't take surprises well. One time, my dads arranged a surprise birthday party for me, and I was in therapy for an entire week. Considering I was only 6 then, but even you would be traumatized if a bunch of random strangers just popped into your living room."

He just stared at her with incredulous eyes. "You do realize you are the most original piece of art that anyone has _ever_ seen, right?" he laughed.

"_That_ I am", she giggled. She liked it that he was using metaphors. They were so important to her. And also, it meant that he was getting something out of their grammar-sessions.

As he started the engine, curiosity got the best of her.

"Tell me, where you're taking me." She nudged at his sides.

"Relax, baby. I'm not kidnapping you, then killing with you a shovel and burying you near the pond. You deserve better than that. And I'm more original than that."

"Really, Noah? I'm flattered that you are so thoughtfully concerned about my death" she said, rolling her eyes at him. It seemed like a stupid thing to do but she quickly checked from the corner of her eye if he had a shovel in the back of the truck. Ofcourse she knew he was joking but still, sometimes it didn't hurt to be extra sure.

"I am not carrying any weapons, if that's what you're looking for." He chuckled.

"Well, one can never be sure, can they?" Rachel tried to brush it off, but then he continued laughing like a moron at her, so she stuck her tongue out at him, which made him burst into a fit of laughter and made her wonder why she even bothers spending time with him. He didn't stop his hideous display of infantile behavior for the rest of the journey, while Rachel continued to look anywhere but at him.

She was still frowning when the truck abruptly stopped, and she was almost thrown out of her seat.

"If you're trying to convince me that you aren't trying to kill me, you are doing a really bad job of it."

"Stop moping and cheer up. We're here." He said, getting out of the truck, carrying his backpack.

Rachel had no idea where exactly "here" was. She didn't even remember being in this part of the town ever. She didn't know if getting out was a good idea, because although it wasn't snowing, it was still very cold. Hesitantly, she clutched to her winter coat and got out of the truck.

Ahead, she saw a pond stretched out reflecting the perfectly reddened sky clutching on to the flamed sun about to say goodbye. It looked so serenely beautiful and she wondered why she had never known of this place before. The area was deserted, save for an old couple across the lawn.

"They come here pretty often." Noah said.

She looked up at him and saw his softened eyes, and almost practically forgot she was supposed to be mad at him. But when he took her hand to pull her along and his smile turned into a smirk, she had no difficulty in remembering their previous banter. So she stayed put in her place, refusing to move and scowling at him.

"It's freezing cold out here and I don't understand why I should risk the perfectly healthy, mucus-free state of my throat for a trip with someone who can't control their childish bouts of annoying laughter, all directed at me."

"Come on, Berry. You know I was kidding. Stop murdering the fun."

"Just give me one good reason why I should do that, Noah Puckerman!"

"Cos you look prettier when you smile."

"Really?"Rachel couldn't help but smile at that. Noah looked downrightly uncomfortable having said that. He probably wasn't programmed to say such nice things to someone.

"I mean, I like it better when you're happy. Cos, you know, that means I don't have to listen to your obnoxious whiny crap." He added, looking away.

So she went ahead and wrapped her arms in his and dragged him ahead. She probably shouldn't be smiling so wide just because a boy said she looked pretty. No, _prettier_. But this was Noah and he just had the ability to bring out surprisingly unusual reactions in her.

"See? It doesn't hurt to talk nice, does it now? " she asked him.

He just shrugged and smiled back at her.

They sat there on the lawn, watching the sun set, and sipping hot coffee that Noah had brought in his backpack, talking about silly things every now and again. But mostly, just silently enjoying the other's presence.

At one point, when Rachel took her eyes off the beautiful scenery ahead to ask Noah of how he came to know of this wonderful place that she'd never known, she caught him already staring at her. When she asked him what he was thinking about, he just kept his gaze locked on her and for a tiny moment they seemed lost in each other's eyes. Rachel found herself leaning in to him and had to blink to gain control of her senses. When she looked again, he just shook his head and shifted his gaze in front of them. And Rachel wouldn't have dismissed the blush in her face to be the chilling cold, had she not been denying how much she liked these little moments between them.

When night began crawling its way and the cold became unbearable, they decided to finally go home. Noah had his arm around her shoulders, as they walked towards his truck. The old couple passed them by, and the lady smiled a wrinkled smile at them, and Rachel wondered if she thought they were a couple too.

And a chilling fear gripped her heart. She almost considered turning around and politely informing the old lady that they were not dating. It was bad enough that she had to explain it to her dads. And just yesterday, Kurt had asked her the same thing, knowing full well that she wasn't the rebound kind of a girl. She still loved Finn. That wouldn't change for a long time, she was positive about that much.

Oh God! _Finn_.

What if Kurt tells him that Noah and she are hanging out? What if Finn believes him? That would ruin any chance of them getting back together. And they _had_ to get back together. It's the only way things were supposed to be. She shifted uncomfortably under Noah's hands. She would have to stop going out with Noah, even only as friends, if she would ever want Finn to forgive her. She would have to say goodbye to this surprisingly beautiful bond they had formed.

Tears filled her eyes and she tried her best to hold them back. Thankfully, it was too dark to notice them, if they decided to betray her. Just when she thought she could have someone trustworthy in her life, he had to be snatched away by fate.

The journey was quiet. Perhaps Noah noticed the shift in her mood. Perhaps he was too busily engrossed in his own thoughts to notice anything. She fiercely hoped that the latter was true.

When they reached her driveway, Rachel smiled at him and thanked him for his time.

"What's going through that tiny head of yours?"

Okay, maybe she wasn't as good an actor as she thought she was. So instead of shrugging it off, because she knew he wouldn't buy it, she replied,

"I'm just worried about my audition for the community theatre tomorrow."

"Oh. Hey, good luck with that. Freaking sure you'll kick their asses." He said, waving, as he drove away.

She smiled and waved at his truck. It felt good to have someone believe in her, besides her daddies. But her smile faded as she remembered she might have to give up on that one person. She wasn't quite sure if she was ready to say goodbye yet.

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Thanx for reading..Hope you liked it..please let me know what you think. Review!


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